Staying at Ed's Place

Staying at Ed's Place
May Swenson

I like being in your apartment, and not disturbing anything.
As in the woods I wouldn't want to move a tree,
or change the play of sun and shadow on the ground.

The yellow kitchen stool belongs right there
against white plaster. I haven't used your purple towel
because I like the accidental cleft of shade you left in it.

At your small six-sided table, covered with mysterious
dents in the wood like a dartboard, I drink my coffee
from your brown mug. I look into the clearing

of your high front room, where sunlight slopes through bare
window squares. Your Afghanistan hammock, a man-sized cocoon
slung from wall to wall, your narrow desk and typewriter

are the only furniture. Each morning your light from the east
douses me where, with folded legs, I sit in your meadow,
a casual spread of brilliant carpets. Like a cat or dog

I take a roll, then, stretched out flat
in the cneter of color and pattern, I listen
to the remote growl of trucks over cobbles on Bethune Street below.

When I open my eyes I discover the peaceful blank
of the ceiling. Its old pain-layere surface is moonwhite
and trackless, like the Sea--of Tranquility.

Swenson’s flow and diction creates a beautiful imagery of what seems like a mundane and ordinary subject. I truly enjoy how she is able to create such a lively image with the use of numerous nouns and verbs. Furthermore, she produces similes when describing an object in the apartment allowing for more detailed descriptions for objects. This in turn allows for a better image to be produced as well as making the poem richer. I appreciate how it seems as though Swenson creates a sense of tranquility throughout the entire poem, then in the last line she states, "like the Sea--of Tranquility." This encircles the whole idea of tranquility and peace. Swenson allowed me for once to just appreciate the sound of words together, words such as, "the remote growl of trucks over cobbles," or "the play of sun and shadow on the ground." The writing exercise in which we were forced just to focus on the details and images produced by a person allowed me to realize the imagery within the poem.
The overall theme of the poem seemed to be that of tranquility, that of which many things were focused around. However, Swenson's multisyllable usage is what stuck out to me the most. The author of "Writing off the Subject" taught me that using multisyllabic words have a way of softening the impact of language. The author states that it can show compassion, tenderness, and most importantly tranquility. Multisyllable words are clearly present throughout the entire poem, furthering the idea of tranquility.